Aggressive BKP for a PRS CE22

[DavidSGilmour]

Hey guys!

I recently bought a PRS CE22 with Dragon II in bridge and neck. The neck pickup it's fine for me, good cleans, etc. But I find int not so heavier in the bridge position, so I'm going to order a BKP. I play in standard and Drop D and my main style it's modern metal (from death to thrash, hardcore or even stoner and progressive). I want an aggressive sound with high output, but avalaible to play Opeth or Mastodon with not a lot of gain. Can you recomend me any BKP?

Thank you!


PS: Sorry if my english it's not good, I'm spanish.

[Kiichi]

Hi and welcome,

my first impulse would be Alnico Nailbomb. Should give you agression and enough output (though realize that due to the great clarity BKPs high output BKPs feel more like mid output from other manufacturers), plus the versatility you desire.
The keywords triggering this response are progressive, agressive, thrash and Opeth.

[ericsabbath]

I had a '99 CE-22 (mahogany + maple top) for a while, and it had a custom shop duncan el diablo
always wondered how much better a nailbomb would sound in that particular guitar
the duncan voicing was like an uber overcompressed warpig/nailbomb/blackhawk crossover and really lacked clarity, although it wasn't harsh like an invader or distortion (it had like 23k, rails and alnico 2 magnet)
also had the dragon II in it, and found it way too bright and the midrange texture was kinda lame, quite toneless

the usual opeth advice is the nailbomb an I think it would match the guitar really well, being alder or mahogany

the miracle man works great for mastodon stuff and sounds great in PRS guitars, and although I didn't try it in a bolt-on, it's said to work well with maple necks... I like it on mahogany quite a lot and I'm not sure about alder, but some users love it in alder, basswood and even swamp ash

what year is your guitar?
alder or mahogany? does it have the maple top?

[Mr. Air]

I can testify to the aggressiveness of the alnico nailbomb and it's versatile as well. It was the first pickup to jump to my mind when I the post.

[TheyCallMeVolume]

ABomb for sure.

[DavidSGilmour]

Thank you all dudes! I didn't expect so much responses that fast!  :P

Eric Hellstyle, my PRS is from 2005, mahogany body with maple top and neck! Also I play with an ENGL Powerball II, no effects.

Alnico Nailbomb was one of my choices. Do you think it would work good in low tunnings? (Like Drop C# or Drop C). Also, ¿would be a Painkiller a good choice?

Again, thank you for helping me so fast, this forum is fantastic!  :P

[ericsabbath]

a 2005 CE is probably alder bodied, unless it's some sort of limited edition
"CLASSIC ELECTRIC 22: 1994 - Current. 22-fret versions of CE Bolt-on and CE Bolt-on Maple-Top. Mahogany body/ back from ’95 as well as stop-tail option. Solid Mahogany body discontinued in 2000, stop tailpiece & wide thin neck profile discontinued in 2001. Offered as wide fat, tremolo only from 2001."

the nailbomb also sounds really good with engl type amps, although for the bands you mentioned, a marshall or laney would be more appropriate (which are also great matches for the alnico nailbomb)

a painkiller would work, but it had a sharper and more aggressive sound
not as punchy as the nailbomb or miracle man, though

[darkbluemurder]

Alnico Nailbomb was one of my choices. Do you think it would work good in low tunnings? (Like Drop C# or Drop C). Also, ¿would be a Painkiller a good choice?

For very low tunings a tight low end is your friend. Hence, the A-Bomb would not be my first choice for low tunings because it has quite a lot of bass. The models described as having the maximum tightness in the low end are the Aftermath and Painkiller (never played either though), followed by Rebel Yell and Holydiver in the contemporary section and the Black Dog as a lower output alternative. Of all these models I only have played the Rebel Yell and Holydiver and would prefer the Rebel Yell for low tunings.

Cheers Stephan

[darkbluemurder]

also had the dragon II in it, and found it way too bright and the midrange texture was kinda lame, quite toneless

This matches my experience with that pickup. I bought a pair as replacements. I actually wanted the Dragon Is but the dealer could only get the Dragon IIs - too bad.

Cheers Stephan

[Shadow78]

Hi,

I have a 2002 CE24 PRS. It has a mahogany body and maple cap. I know that PRS discontinued the solid mahogany without a maple cap in 2000. And from then on until they ceased production of these guitars it was mahogany with a maple cap. Tim has suggested an Alnico Nailbomb to me as well and others have suggested a Holy Diver too. It depends on what you really need from the amp and guitar together. I feel your pain...I'm in the middle of debating them as well!

Good luck!

[ericsabbath]

guess I misread the body specs  :?
my bad  :)

anyway, my first choice would still be the a-bomb, then the miracle man as a close second, then the diver or c-bomb